Day 2Urumqi - Turpan

Today, you will take hours driving to Turpan (200km, 2 - 2.5 driving), on the way, you will pass Urumqi Wind Power Mill, which was built for producing electrical power in the area. After cross the valley of Tianshan we will arrive in the lowest depression of China - Turpan City. Upon arrival, visit the mysterious death city, the Ruins of Jiaohe Ancient City, which reveals traces of a prosperous ancient trading center and military stronghold 1,600 years ago. And then visit Emin Minaret (Sugong Pagoda) - the biggest ancient pagoda existing in Xinjiang and the only Islamic ancient pagoda in the country and ancient Karez Well, the underground water supply and irrigation system. A special dinner is arranged under grape trellis in a local family's house.

Jiaohe Ancient City

Day 3Turpan - Urumqi - Kashgar

Have another day excursion in Turpan that including the visit to Gaochang Ancient City, which was an important garrison town on the Silk Road, Flaming Mountainwhich the mountains seem to be on fire in the burning sun and become a purplish-brown color, and Bezeklik Caves. After the tour, be transferred back to Urumqi (200km, 2 - 2.5 driving)for your flight to Kashgar.

Gaochang Ancient City

Day 4Kashgar

Karakul Lake

Meals: Breakfast, LunchAccommodation: In Kashgar

Take a tour through the Karakurum Highway to Karakul Lake, enjoy the beautiful snow- capped mountain of Muztagh Ata and the lake. After the tour, drive back to Kashgar for overnight. You could choose to walk around and explore the local market in the free time.

Karakul Lake

Day 5Kashgar

Zhiren Street, Id Kah Mosque, Apak Hoja Tomb, Local Bazaar

Meals: Breakfast, LunchAccommodation:In Kashgar

Today, take a visit to Zhiren Street, an old street with an amazing hand-made stuff from strictly utilitarian cookware to exotic musical instruments. Then continue your trip to Id Kah Mosque, which is one of the largest and busiest in China. Then, you can take a short visit to Apak Hoja Tomb. If it is Sunday, the local Bazaarwill be a good place for you to have a visit. This ancient market attracts locals and merchants from all over Xinjiang and nearby countries such as Pakistan and Kirghizstan.

Id Kah Mosque

Day 6Kashgar - Urumqi

After a leisure breakfast in the hotel. Take the morning flight back to Urmqi. In the afternoon, visit the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region Museum, from which you could know the history and culture of Xinjiang. You could also have chance to see the mummy discovered in Xinjiang. Then have walk in Erdaoqiao Grand Bazaar, which is believed to be the largest outdoor market in town. Free at leisure for the rest of the day.

Erdaoqiao Grand Bazaar

Day 7Departure Urumqi

Heavenly Lake, Transfer service to airport

Meals: Breakfast

Take a driving for 120km northeast to visit the holy Heavenly Lake (Tianchi) (3 hours) - the beautiful lake is flanked by rugged pines and cypresses, with clear melting waters reflecting the surrounding of snow capped mount Bogeda. After the tour, say goodbye to beautiful Xinjiang. Be transferred to the airport for your flight to next stop.

Remarks:

※ Prices are valid from Mar 1, 2019 to Feb 29, 2020, except Chinese public holidays, local fairs or events.
※ TCT reserves the right to adjust the price caused by exchange rate
※ No guide on the flight and Yangtze River cruise.
※ Recommended hotels are subject to change in actual booking
※ Special requirements should be advised to TCT in advance.
※ TCT reserves the right of final explanation for any change due to the reasons beyond our control.

Useful Information

We hired TCT as a private guide as we traveled from Shanghai to Beijing with lots of stops in between. We had the most incredible time. Our tour guides and drivers were professional and amazing. Each tour guide treated us as if we were part of their family. They were always prompt and courteous. Most importantly, their knowledge kept us wanting to know more. We loved the traditions and cultures. We highly recommend the Impression shows, especially the one on West Lake. Our favorite over night arrangements was when we stayed at Courtyard 7 in the Hutong, in Beijing. It was nice being part of the culture. Thanks TCT for a most memorable trip.

Salim A

5.0

When I planning our private trip to china I have read many trip adviser reviews and I have noticed Janet Chan’s name came up a number of times so i sent her an e-mail asked for the best two weeks private tour in China for 6 persons , whiten two days she replied me recommending 5 cities ( Zhangjiajie, hangzhuo , shanghai, Beijing , Guilin ) we went through the program which she sent to us it was excellent so we asked her to go ahead to arrange our journey . it was a great choice we made, The tour guides were knowledgeable and helpful. The hotels which reserved for us by TCT were excellent We can only say thanks for TCT and especially Janet Chan

ILma H

5.0

We had the most wonderful time in our trip to China, thanks to TCT.
We had a great team in every City: Leo in Shanghai; Sarah in Guilin and Yangshuo; Snow in Chengdu, Carol in Xian and Jane in Beijing.
They prompt met us at every airport, and train station and welcomed us with warm friend smiles. We appreciated how responsible they were and always on time to take us everywhere we were going!
They made our vacation the most memorable ever. We learned so much about China's history and the fascinating stories they shared with us! our trip organizer Janet had lunch with us in Guilin and introduced her daughter to us. we felt like part of the family:) and that's how we felt the entire trip, like we had our cousins waiting for us on every airport...what an AMAZING trip. we highly recommend TCT! Very special thanks to Snow for re- arranging our visit to the Panda bear sanctuary for us to take pictures with the baby Panda! Thanks again to Leo, Sarah, Snow, Carol and Jane. We loved you guys!!!

angelalee79

5.0

My husband and I just returned from a vacation to China. We visited Beijing, Xian, Guilin, Yangtze and Shanghai through Top China Travel (TCT).
Yocky from TCT was our travel agent. She was excellent and prompt in answering our questions and help us tremendously in getting our visas. We were pleasantly surprised when she was there along with Lizzie our tour guide to greet us at Guilin airport. We really enjoyed her and Lizzie's company and their in depth knowledge of the city. All the hotels in each of the city we stayed were elegant and meals were delicious with a taste of local flavor.
We can't say enough about Yocky and all the tour guides, Jennifer in Beijing, John in Xian, Lizzie in Guilin, & Chris in Shanghai. They were all top notch with their friendly attitudes, professionalism, attention to detail and their passion in the country's culture.
We had a great time in China thanks to Top China Travel and their expert tour guides. I would highly recommend anyone interested in planning a vacation in China to use TCT as their agency of choice. Thanks to TCT for a most enjoyable and memorable vacation.
AL

jdivens2017

5.0

I recently visited China with my son and his friend.
Janet Chan’s patience with us as we kept changing our minds on where to go and what to do was amazing and we thoroughly enjoyed our visit to China.
Starting in Chengdu we were met at the airport by Summer and the driver. They were on time and Summer was excellent with explanations and answered all our questions. She did not rush us and we had the time to see and take all the pictures we wanted.
On To Xi’an . We were met at the airport by Lili and the driver.
She was knowledgeable and very interesting. While visiting the Terracotta Soldiers she made sure that we had the best views and even helped us with finding the best prices for our souvenirs. She suggested we visit the wall and while there we saw the night time show. We also visited the People’s park ( a suggestion from Lili) and were amazed at all the activities there.
We had decided to visit Pingyao on our own and really enjoyed walking around the city and even visited the underground castle. As we did not book any tours for this town our kind host at the hostel drove us to the castle and back. While there I lost my train ticket. We contacted Janet, and her agent, the driver and the train station were extremely helpful in helping me. When we arrived in Beijing the driver went out of his way to help me get the refund for my ticket and I will be forever grateful.
We had only one issue through no fault of Top China Travel, with the guide the day we went to the Forbidden City, Summer Palace and The Temple of Heaven. We were picked up on time, we were rushed through the Forbidden City with little explanation. There was no time to visit or take pictures. We did have more time in the afternoon for the Temple of Heaven and the Summer Palace but I would have like more information about all three. Our last day was memorable . The Great Wall that Janet suggested was spectacular and I managed to walk to the tenth post. We had more than enough time to enjoy this experience. A short tour of Water Town after an excellent lunch was also included. Even though it took longer to reach our destination the spectacular views were so worth the bus ride and on the way we got to see the country side.
We found the people of China most helpful, friendly and kind and it is a trip I will remember forever.
I thank you, Janet for your help in making this amazing trip of a lifetime possible and being there when we needed help.
Needless to say I would not hesitate to recommend Top China Travel to anyone. They are very professional and you get the feeling that they personally care that you have a great China experience.
Janine

Julie B

5.0

My sister and I were looking for an independent tour to China and Tibet and after writing to three different agencies with our proposed route and activities we decided to go with TCT travel. Why TCT?
Daniel Mo, our contact person responded quickly to every email that we sent. He was both professional and friendly. An excellent travel agent!
The planning was personal. If we didn’t like a proposed hotel or tour, he came up with something better. He made recommendations about sights worth seeing and places worth skipping. Nothing was too much to ask; he wanted us to be satisfied. The other two agencies were more inclined to offer standard hotels and tours.
The bank transfers were efficient. There was no hassle with money.
Our route: Beijing, Lhasa, Xian, Guilin-Yangshou, Shanghai, a total of 17 days in October.
Seeing Tibet was to be the highlight of our trip. Daniel arranged the Tibet permit, a hotel in the center of Lhasa and a local Tibetan guide who was truly amazing. If you have the time and are not frightened off by the high altitude (you must take medicine), go to Tibet!!
That being said, our entire China-Tibet trip was fantastic. We enjoyed everything that we did, all of our tours. The hotels had excellent locations (extremely important). Our guides were wonderful and did everything they could to make things run smoothly. They all met us at the airport(s) upon arrival and assisted us at departure. They accompanied us everywhere organizing and translating and of course supplying us with information at all of the tour sights. They ordered our lunches based on what we like to eat (my sister is a vegetarian). We were never herded around like a tour group. The approach was personal and flexible.
All of our transportation was arranged perfectly by Daniel/TCT; flights, trains, vans, cars, boats, bicycles and rickshaws. We could not have asked for a better introduction to China and I would certainly recommend TCT to anyone who wishes to travel independently. From the planning phase to the actual execution; excellent!

Bianca v

5.0

My mother and I recently visited China from 4 September 2017 to 18 September 2017. Our private tour with Top China Travel (TCT) started in Beijing and ended in Shanghai. Along the way we visited Xian, Guilin and did a 3 day cruise down the Yangtze river. We were very very impressed with the services provided by TCT. The guides and drivers who met us in every city where enthusiastic, friendly, helpful and entertaining. They continuously strived to do their utmost best to accommodate us and make our experience a pleasant one. Having the guides definately made our trip a relaxing one especially with the language barrier. Our trip planner from TCT, Bonnie even met up with us in Guilin to meet us and give us gifts which was really something special. TCT made sure we experienced all the best and most amazing sites of China, both old and new! The tour was attentive and personal and I would definitely recommend it as a MUST to anybody travelling to China!!! Thank you to our tour Guides Linda, Lucy, Michelle, Cherry, Victor, Jakob and our tour planner Bonnie for the most wonderful visit. China is an exquisite and vibrant country which will definitely see me again!

Prasad M

5.0

My name is Capt Prasad Mani and with my wife Rita completed a 8 day trip organised by TCT Gullin pic Ms Bonnie.
She put up a fantastic programme and arranged 4.star hotels as per our request and English speaking guides. We had Cathy at Beijing, Jackie and Amy at Xian, Echo and Jenny at Shanghai.
The trip, food and luxury cars with drivers were very comfortable and both safe and on time.
All the guides were very professional knowledgeable catered to all our needs. They were close yet not getting personal that they became good friends.
We look forward to returning to China and use the services of Bonnie and TCT.
We would recommend their services
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Ryan S

5.0

We chose TCT for an 11 day/10 night private guided tour trip through Beijing, Xi'an, Guilin, Yangshuo, and Shanghai. Janet helped us plan and finalize the itinerary for our trip via email and phone communication and was very accommodating and helpful during the entire process. She also kept in contact with us throughout the trip to make sure that everything went smoothly and to our satisfaction.
For the city guides, we had Merry in Beijing, Christina in Xi'an, Ji in Guilin/Yangshuo, and Leo and Sara in Shanghai. Each of our guides were helpful and informative and made sure that our needs were met along the way, and all of them were flexible with any last-minute requests or issues that came up. Special mention also for our driver Mr. Ai in Beijing who always made sure that we had water and that we got to our destinations on time regardless of the traffic situation, and likewise with Ms. Luo in Shanghai.
Our trip overall was very action-packed and we were able to see almost everything planned on our schedule including some last-minute inserted locations which was a plus. We had a great time visiting on our first trip to China, and would recommend TCT for anyone looking to looking to plan their own trip there.

Jennifer B

5.0

I enjoyed my trip to China thanks to my tour guides; Angela in Beijing and Waiting in Shanghai. Both of them were incredibly knowledgeable about their particular cities and were able to answer any questions I had. I wouldn't have taken so many great pictures if it weren't for my tour guides and them advising me on great picture moments. With both Angela and Waiting, it felt like I was touring China with good friends; which was great since I went on this trip solo. I will definitely book with TCT next time I visit China.
Thank you for making my first vacation abroad memorable.

Vacationer787754

5.0

Enjoyable busy day!7 am start covering Tiananmen Square and Forbidden City early on amidst tight crowds followed by an unexpected stop at Pharmacy institute where we were able for a small “tip” enjoy a short foot massage and consultation with a Chinese medicine expert. Unfortunately this turned into an embarrassing pressure sell of his prescribed medicines which left us underwhelmed!Lunch was acceptable followed by a wiz around the Temple of Heaven. On the way to our final destination the Summer Palace we had another unexpected stop and “selling” opportunity at a pearl factory (store actually). Guide had his own sense of humour and opinions which were often unintelligible or off the wall and his English Weaker than other “English” speaking guides that we have experienced in China.All that said, we had a good day out in some very worthwhile places to visit and felt it value for money. Our favorite was the relative peace of the Summer Palace surroundings and in particular watching the old guys flying kites at heights I could not imagine possible.

dp0k0rny

5.0

We prepared for our stay in MAY 13 nights Tour in China. All local services have been arranged by TOP CHINA TRAVEL in direct cooperation with Janet Chan. We rcvd. all recommendations for program items and its arrangement, all needs were solved immediately, all replies also in the evening and very fast. Seen places: Peking, Xian, Guilin, Yangshuo, Huangshan and Shanghai. All services booked perfectly, local guides with great assistance and service. Janet checked out the situation with our group all the time during stay in China. Great work, thank you.

Jean G

5.0

We hired TCT as a private guide with car for travel to Beijing, Shanghai and Huanzhou. TCT prepared the day-by-day program, booked first class hotels and train tickets and arranged for very good English speaking guides, among them Cathy in Beijing was amamzing. The cars were veryy good, the drivers were diriving very well but carefully. The program was followed with a very high degree of precision and the guides and drivers allowed also for flexibility. We enjoyed the trip very much and also very much appreciated the services provided bt TCT. The attractions included were paid in advance.

Helen L

5.0

We have just returned from a very satisfying trip to China. One of the highlights was the lovely city of Guilin. We had no idea that this would be such a pleasant spot in which to stroll around and enjoy the bridges and walkways. The temperature was comfortable and we felt at home walking around the park, footbridges, and along the lakes.
Helen and Jim from Canada

glennkim11

5.0

we looked around and could not find anyone else that would tailor a trip how we wanted it But Janet from Top China Travel was so helpful we emailed at first then talked on skype Janet Chan of the Guilin office went that extra mile
Janet helped us plan our 4 week tour of China starting in Shanghi then to Yellow Mountain were Misha met us took us to some old villages then spent 3 days in the mountains with Misha showing us her wonderful part of the world (a Must do) then took the Public Bus to Hangzhou this was a great choice then onto Beijing, Xian by High Speed train (spoil your self go 1st class was great) we did the Great wall at Mutianyu we had 4 hr wish we had more time there Herbet our guid took us to The Sacred road & the Chang Tomb in the afternoon well worth the very long day
Xian Terracotta Warriors Met the guy that found them and a great day
Guili,Yangshou & Longsheng Annie or guid was great took us to some real out of the way places we met up with Janet in Guilin and she gave us a very personalised gift something very special to my wife & I Janet made sure we did not miss a thing. All of our tour guides and drivers were waiting for us at the train stations/airports as pre-arranged which took a lot of stress away. Everything ran so smoothly. A big Thank You to TCT Janet and the team for making our experience so enjoyable. WE will be Back
The Food was Great go to the little cafes in the back streets well worth it and cheap